New study reveals Millennials are overworked and undervalued

Struggling at work? Know you need to do something about it but don't know where to start? You're not alone.

A new study has found that 76% of Millennials define themselves by their career, yet only half feel that their career is following the right path. In other words: young professionals know where they want to be but they don't know how to get there.

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In the independent study, business psychologist, Susan Scott, looked at 61 UK-based 21-32 year olds and asked them to rate how satisfied they were with working life on a scale of 1 to 5.

She asked them about all aspects of their 9-to-5. How stressed do they typically feel day-to-day? Do they have something to aim for within their company? How supportive do they find management? And the results were, well, not that encouraging.

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Scott found that much of the worker's dissatisfaction was stemming from a lack of communication and support within businesses.

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60% of participants reported that they don't regularly talk to their manager about their career aspiration. 45% said that they didn't find that their employers supported their career development and 29% of people said that they weren't copying with the pressure of work whatsoever. With job motivation and satisfication being one of the key components of wellbeing, that's a huge amount of people not experiencing either.

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Below, we spoke to Dr Hendrie Weisinger, co-author of How To Perform Under Pressure: The Science Of Doing Your Best When It Matters Most, to find out what ways you can help reduce your stress levels at work and increase job-satisfaction. This advice is worth bookmarking...

DON’T DWELL ON PAST FAUX-PAS

Haunted by that meeting you stuttered through or the interview where you could barely remember your own name, let alone your best attributes? You need to let it go. Or better still, change how you think about it. “See failures as a chance to learn how to perform better in the future,” suggest Professor Beilock. “Research with Canadian national swimmers suggests that dwelling on past failures can send the mind and body into a helpless state and, as a result, undermine your motivation for subsequent performances.”

STAND LIKE YOU MEAN BUSINESS

Forget power dressing, you’re better off pulling a power pose. “Recent studies show that when we stand with our arms open instead of closed across the chest, and straight with shoulders back, not hunched, the brain and body respond by increasing testosterone, which promotes confidence, and decreasing the stress hormone cortisol,” says Dr Weisinger. Try this: sit in a chair and think about the sitting posture that helps you feel most interested and enthusiastic, and hold that pose for two minutes. Then do the same standing. “Research suggests that holding a power pose for two minutes gives you a sense of confidence.”

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REMEMBER, SECOND CHANCES DO EXIST

In nervy moments, we’ll likely experience ‘pressure distortions’, which magnify the enormity of the situation, increasing anxiety and making us do worse. Sound familiar? “We’re often guilty of thinking a pressurised situation is a ‘chance of a lifetime’, but by making something ‘do or die’, you quadruple the pressure,” says Dyr Weisinger. Instead, adopt the mindset: ‘This is one of many opportunities’. Focussing on this beforehand makes the situation less threatening, helping you to relax and concentrate on the job at hand.

SNAP A SELFIE PRE-MEETING

If you get sweaty palms at the mere thought of speaking in front of colleagues, taking selfies beforehand could keep nerves under control. “In a series of studies, researchers at the University of Chicago found that frequently seeing yourself on camera desensitises you to feeling self-conscious,” explains Dr Weisinger. Even better, video yourself in action. “Practising under mild levels of stress can help you get used to pressure, so you don’t fear the competition element,” explains Sian Beilock, professor of psychology and author of Choke: The Secret To Performing Under Pressure.